A Management Guide for Invasive Plants in Southern Forests James ...

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38Cultural MethodsSeveral cultural practices, including prescribed burning and water-level manipulation, can reduce or control nonnativeinvasive plant populations. However, such practices also may have undesirable impacts to soils, animal habitat, andnative species, so care in planning and enactment must be exercised.Prescribed BurningFire has played a critical and natural role in the development and maintenance of grasslands, forests, and wetlandsthroughout history. Prescribed burning is the deliberate use of fire under specified and controlled conditions to achievea resource management goal. Most States train burn specialists through a certified prescribed burn managers programand require that those who contract burning have certification for providing liability protection. Like other invasive treatments,prescribed burning requires special skills and experience, including smoke management, for effective and safeimplementation. A prescribed burning plan must include clearly stated objectives, the ignition approach, equipment andmanpower needs, and mitigation measures. Additionally, a permit is required from State or local agencies before burning.Prescribed burning for invasive plant management has advantages and disadvantages.Advantages of prescribed burning forinvasive plant control—1. Per acre, prescribed burning is one of themost inexpensive treatments.2. Top growth of herbaceous invasive plantscan be consumed and small woody plants canbe fire girdled, resulting in resprouts of lowerheights. Resprouts of trees, shrubs, and vinesthen can be more easily treated with herbicidefoliar sprays.3. Some seeds of invasive plants can beconsumed in the burn.4. Prescribed burns improve access to thetreatment site and expose hazards, such asPrivet, fire girdled.Privet respouts afterburn.stumps, sinkholes, old wells, and pits that might otherwise hinder or endanger further operations.5. Prescribed burns can clear thatch and shrubs for more effective herbicide applications.Chinese privetsprouts along root.Jane HargreavesDisadvantages of prescribed burning for invasive plant control—1. Prescribed burning requires special skills andexperience, investments in time for training andcertification, and purchase of special equipment.2. Results are variable and can be unexpected whenfire escapes.3. Abundant resprouts and seedlings of invasives alongwith native regrowth can exacerbate conditions forsubsequent treatments and jeopardize their success.4. Prescribed burns can stimulate flowering and seedingof some invasive plants, such as cogongrass, and scarifyseeds of others, such as lespedezas (Lespedeza spp.),to promote enhanced germination.5. Some invasive plants can burn extremely hot andintense, with vines creating ladder fuels, placing fireCogongrass rhizomes havecrews in jeopardy, killing or injuring desirable plants, andbeen spread by fireplows.increasing chances of fire escape.6. Litter clearing and loss of stand components like shrubscan make the site more prone for reinvasion or invasion by other species.7. Plowing fire lines can spread invasive plants and make soil susceptible to invasion and soil erosion.Japanese climbing fernburns into tree and shrubtops by fuel ladders.Chuck Bargeron
Prescribed burn effectiveness—The effectiveness of a prescribed burndepends on the intensity and timingrelative to target plant size and development.Fire intensity is determinedby the amount of fuel and its arrangementand dryness, along with weather,topography, and ignition source andpattern. Prescribed burns are usuallyignited by drip torches, initially alongplowed or disked fire lines to widenthe fire break. Then the area is ignitedas a ring-fire technique around theperimeter or as strip (or spot) headfiresor backfires working with or against thewind direction.The most effective time for weakeningwoody invasive plants is burning in thelate spring after plants have initiatedgrowth using root reserves. Burningin late winter or spring leaf-out canminimize the period of bare soil, whilesummer burns are the hottest and canmaximize consumption of standingplants. Burning can predispose a foreststand or opening to invasion, eventhough prescribed burning increasinglyis favored for native plant and longleafpine ecosystem restoration as well asfuel reduction. A close evaluation of thebenefits and risks is demanded beforeapplying prescribed burning.Fire lines contain prescribed burnsand are the base for backfires.Igniting a strip-headfire with adrip torch.Dale WadePLOWED LINEWINDROADBURN BACK BASE CONTROL LINE FIRSTWINDStrip-HeadFireTechniqueBACK FIRERing Fire TechniqueBURNED OUTDIRT ROADPLOW LINE39StartFireHereU.S. Forest Service ArchiveU.S. Forest Service ArchiveFlamers or Spot BurnersFire from a propane spot burner can be used to kill individual or small groups of invasiveplants. Commercial kits are available for attaching propane cylinders to a backpackframe and fitting the cylinder with a flame nozzle. Additionally, tractor mounted units havealso been developed. When plant and wet fuel conditions permit, the flame is directedat herbaceous and woody invasives. This operation can be convenient since it can beperformed in wet conditions and when fuels are low. Best results are obtained underwindless conditions as winds can prevent the heat from reaching the target weeds. Forfurther details, refer to the The Nature Conservancy’s “Weed Control Methods Handbook”appendix at http://www.invasive.org/gist/products/handbook/23.Spotburn.pdf.Propane spot burnerstreating garlic mustard.
Page 4 and 5: AcknowledgmentsThe clarity and accu
Page 6 and 7: Contents (continued)Basic Spraying
Page 9 and 10: IntroductionOnly recently has the e
Page 11 and 12: Recently escaped plants can remain
Page 13 and 14: • Formulation of coordinated cont
Page 15 and 16: Preparation always has been critica
Page 17 and 18: 9Elements and Tasks of an Invasive
Page 19 and 20: When moving cut invasive plants tha
Page 21: 4. Eradicate, control or contain, a
Page 24 and 25: 16Foliar and Soil-Active Herbicides
Page 26: 18Mixing HerbicidesAlways use clean
Page 29 and 30: 21Selective Herbicide ApplicationsA
Page 31 and 32: 23Basal Sprays and WipesBasal spray
Page 33 and 34: 25Special tree injectors are availa
Page 35 and 36: 27Soil SpotsSpots of soil-active he
Page 37 and 38: Spray nozzle systems for tractors a
Page 39 and 40: Tractor-Mounted Weed WickApplicator
Page 41 and 42: Hand clippers are useful for cuttin
Page 43 and 44: 35Skid-Steer LoadersPaul David Blak
Page 45: Attachments for bulldozers are desc
Page 49 and 50: 41Steven T. ManningCare of the herd
Page 51: Herbicide placement, as it relates
Page 54 and 55: 46Invasive TreesInvasive tree speci
Page 56 and 57: 48CamphortreeCamphortree [Cinnamomu
Page 58 and 59: 50Chinese ParasoltreeChinese paraso
Page 60 and 61: 52Paper MulberryPaper mulberry [Bro
Page 62: 54Russian OliveChris EvansPatrick B
Page 65 and 66: 57Tree-of-HeavenTree-of-heaven or a
Page 67 and 68: 59Tungoil TreeTungoil tree [Vernici
Page 69 and 70: 61Bush HoneysucklesAmurAmurAmurAmur
Page 71 and 72: 63Hen’s Eyes, Coral ArdisiaDavid
Page 74 and 75: 66Japanese KnotweedSteven T. Mannin
Page 76: 68Leatherleaf MahoniaNancy Loewenst
Page 79 and 80: 71Shrubby Nonnative LespedezasShrub
Page 81 and 82: 73Tropical Soda AppleJohn EverestCh
Page 83 and 84: Invasive VinesInvasive vines are so
Page 85 and 86: 77Five-Leaf Akebia, Chocolate VineS
Page 87 and 88: 79KudzuErwin ChamblissTed BodnerTed
Page 89 and 90: 81Nonnative WisteriasTed BodnerTed
Page 91 and 92: 83Vincas, PeriwinklesBigleaf periwi
Page 93 and 94: 85Invasive Grasses and CanesNonnati
Page 95 and 96: 87CogongrassCharles BrysonCogongras
Page 98 and 99:
90Nepalese Browntop, Japanese Stilt
Page 100 and 101:
92Weeping LovegrassWeeping lovegras
Page 102 and 103:
94Invasive ForbsForbs are broadleaf
Page 104 and 105:
96Chinese LespedezaTed BodnerChines
Page 106 and 107:
98CrownvetchCrownvetch [Securigera
Page 108 and 109:
100Nodding Plumeless Thistle, Musk
Page 111 and 112:
103Resource InformationBooksBurrrel
Page 113 and 114:
105Resource Information (continued)
Page 115 and 116:
Page 117:
Page 120 and 121:
112Appendix A —Nonnative Invasive
Page 122 and 123:
114Appendix A —Nonnative Invasive
Page 124 and 125:
116Appendix B —Nonnative Invasive
Page 126 and 127:
118Appendix C —Low-Growing Native
Page 128:
120Pesticide Precautionary Statemen
Page 131:
The Forest Service, U.S. Department
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A Management Guide for Invasive Plants in Southern Forests James ...

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